To George Bentham   25 April 1873

Melbourne bot Garden,

25/4/73

The rest of the Monocotyledoneae with adnate Calyx-tube, dear Mr Bentham, was despatched under date 24 March by the Steamship Somersetshire, and an other portion on the 30 jan by the Hampshire under care of Capt Ridgers. In that instance no bill of loading was got; so there is some risk! of loss, unless the Kew Agent has watched the arrival of the Ship.

I was inclined to send you the Liliaceae and allied orders, which are ready, by the Atrato; but not knowing, whether you really do require them, I though it better to wait for your next letter. For I might other wise be deprived of the use of the collections for a year or two without need, until the 7th vol¹ was in progress.

During the Easter Holidays² I worked a little on plants, and commenced the 60th number of the fragmenta.³ I find that Donatia is a truly Stylideous plant, simply with its column dissolved and with its corolla deprived of a tube, having however the broad base of the petals (or segments) as in Galium &c. So there can not be the slightest doubt now, after what Dr Hooker already has written on the subject, that Donatia is Stylideous.⁴ I am likely to get ripe fruits from the Alps of Tasmania next month. This month the plant was still in flower.

Another interesting fact is the occurrence of Lagerstroemia Indica in N.E. Australia. I found also, that Threlkeldia haloragoides is a new genus of Phytolacceae, as indicated by me several years ago. I sent the manuscript of the plant to Kew, as I had no male flowers, thinking that there might have been such an other specimens of Drummonds there. I have never receive others since, but reexamining the specimens returned by you, I find all my former observations confirmed. I enclose the copy of my manuscript made by Mr Th Müller at the time,⁵ who returned several years ago to Europe. Probably I should never have looked on the plant again, had I not received a genuine new Threlkeldia with flowers three times as long as in T. diffusa from Queensland and this brought me back to my Trematocarya⁶ of former years.

Having meanwhile applied the same name to a fossil genus,⁷ I have called the new Phytolaccaceous plant Cypselocarpus haloragoides.⁸

The curious Hemichroa mesembryanthema will also interest you. Like Kochia oppositifolia it has the leaves opposed. I have sent the plant to Kew. The new Kochia dichoptera has 5 additional vertical wings! The fruit of Cadellia monostylis proves that plant to be very distinct as a genus. I have named it Guilfoylia in honor of the sender of the fruit.⁹ You may find other notes of interest in the new fragmenta, the work after a whole years cessation being at last resumed, amidst continued combat for existence of myself!

With profound regards

Always your

Ferd. von Mueller

I find Monochoria cyanea quite distinct from M vaginalis

I look forward with intense interest to the new volume of the genera also to the vol VI of the Flora.¹⁰

Cadellia monostylis

Cypselocarpus haloragoides

Donatia

Galium

Hemichroa mesembryanthema

Kochia dichoptera

Kochia oppositifolia

Lagerstroemia Indica

Liliaceae

Monochoria cyanea

Monochoria vaginalis

Monocotyledoneae

Threlkeldia diffusa

Threlkeldia haloragoides

Trematocarya